Island nations are being overlooked
Island states under threat from even small rises in sea levels want the world's major emitters to make deeper cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.
Michael von Bülow, COP15 Copenhagen, 12/05/2009 20:40
Island nations that could be wiped off the map by rises in sea levels, forcing millions of people to abandon their homes, are being overlooked in international climate talks.
This was the message Tuesday at the five-day World Ocean Conference (WOC) in Manado, Indonesia.
"Dealing with environmental refugees will have a much more serious impact on the global economy and global security in fact than what wars have ever done to this planet," said Rolph Payet, a presidential adviser from the African island nation of the Seychelles.
Payet added that there had been "zero" serious discussions in top international forums on how to deal with massive flows of "climate refugees" from low-lying and drought-prone areas.
Up to 150 million people could be displaced by the effects of climate change by 2050, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts. These include sea level rises of as much as 59 centimeters (23 inches).
Representatives at the WOC said the targets for emissions cuts that are currently being discussed among the world’s major emitters are too low to prevent disastrous rises in sea levels. The Alliance of Small Island States is pushing for 85 percent cuts in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
The European Union has committed to reducing its emissions by 80 percent by mid-century. US President Barack Obama has proposed an 83 percent cut.
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